Pretty close to 1000Km cycled

At the time of this posting, I am about a couple KM's shy of reaching the 1000 mark.

Throughout my trek, whenever I am riding my bike, I turn on my Garmin etrex Legend HCX GPS. It is logging my travel information (via tracks), guiding me to where I have to go, and keeping stats for my trek.

I only use it when I am cycling. In times where I have been hiking/walking, I've used the Google Maps app on my phone.

My stats thusfar are:

998 Km total distance
Max Speed - 65.9Km per hour
Moving Time: 57hrs 24 min

1000Km in three weeks might not seem that much (I've previously pulled off 240Km in a single day riding from Picton to Toronto), but keep in mind that all of this has been done while in BC, quite often in mountainous conditions.

Week #2

This is the data for week #2

June 8 - Woke up around 7:30am, did some quick reading. Packed things up, enjoyed breakfast with Karen and Russ, who were both heading up to Whistler for the week-end. Biked over to Stawamus Chief Provincial Park - stashed my bike and gear in the woods. Hiked up to Peak #1 of the Chief - Amazing view. Hiked down, and walked over to Shannon Falls.
Returned to hidden bike - continued riding back to Mike's in North Vancouver. Took a quick shower, and was picked up by Mike's friend Geoff, and headed out to Julian's for his birthday BBQ.

June 9 - Woke up, and hung out in front of Mike's house enjoying the sunny morning. Headed out for a late breakfast with Saulius, Julian and his wife, Mike and Morna. Hung out some more at Mike's,buteventually rode out to MEC Bikefest in North Vancouver. Took the Iron Workers Memorial bridge into Vancouver, travelling from east to west on Hastings. Popped in to the Robert Lee YMCA for some steam room jacuzzi stretches/refreshment, then back to Mike's for the night.

June 10 - Rode out for some early morning Yoga at the Robert Lee YMCA, then went to DIY bike shop "Our Community Bikes". Purchased a bike helmet, and some extra brake pads. Cycled the perimeter of Stanley Park, hung out at Third Beach, then rode the Seaside Bicyle Route. Returned to the YMCA, picked up my things, then headed back to Mike's.

June 11 - Rainy catch up planning research day.

June 12 - More work at the computer, but eventually headed out for some stretches at the Robert Lee YMCA. Returned back to Mike's to pack for my Vancouver Island expedition.

June 13 - Mike and Morna left early to catcha flight to Toronto, while I headed out to catch an early ferry from Horseshoe Bay to Nanaimo. Just made it. Spent ride talking to a journalist from Ontario. Started ride to Port Alberni, where I would spend the night with Couchsurfing hosts Chris and Nathan. Took several breaks in Parksville, and enjoyed the magic of lowtide. Continued towards Qualicum Beach, then made my way to Alberni. The ride up the hump was long and tough. Enjoyed dinner, wine, and great conversation with Chris and Nathan.

June 14 - Woke up early, took a shower, then enjoyed breakfast with my hosts. Just made it to the docks and caught the ferry from Port Alberni to Ucluelet. Overcast and cloudy formost of the ride. Enjoyed talking to the various passengers, most of whom were returning to Alberni on the same day. Watched S3E9 of Game of Thrones. Yikes!!!! Arrived in Ucluelet around 1:30pm, and headed out for a chilly ride to Tofino. Picked up crazy expensive supplies from town, then pitched my tent outside of town.

Week #3

This is the data for week #3

June 15 - Rode out to Radar Hill, and enjoyed the view of the Tofino region. Rode into Tofino, enjoyed some coffee and wifi from Vincente's. No data access with my phone anywhere - only an Edge connection, which would cause my phone to convulse. Rode out and explored the various beaches in the area. Checked out the Rainforrest walk in Pacific Rim National park. Cleaned all the sand off my bike using one of the outdoor showers by the washrooms of Long Beach.

June 16 - Woke up really early, and packed things up for the early morning boat ride to Hot Springs Cove. Enjoyed coffee @ Vincente's, and briefly charged my phone and expansion pack. Locked my bike up, picked up supllies, then paid an expensive one way fare to the Cove. Sleepy boat ride to the Cove. Also - I came to realize that I was rather stinky. Upon arriving at the Cove, carried everything with me on the 2k boardwalk to the Cove. Upon arrival, tide was low, so bathed in the lower regions. Amazing! Water was really hot in the upper areas, and James (fellow passenger) and I snagged the best spots. Avoided dirty looks from the many others that rolled in. Returned to dock area, and set up camp in the campgrounds. Was the only person camping there overnight. Returned to the Hot Springs, and enjoyed more bathing time, and some reading. Some locals from Tofino came, and offered some local mud they had picked up to smear over the body. Met an elderly man who had sailed from Victoria by himself (1 week), lamenting that it was likely his last time doing so. Returned to the campsite in the early evening, made a pasta dinner that turned out rather bland, and went to sleep before dark.

June 17 - I slept 10 hours, which is something that I have not done since likely my teenage years. Hiked over to the Hot Springs, and met some people who arrived by sailboat the night before. Enjoyed the hotsprings talking with them about their sailing trek, and my cycling trek. Eventually a boat from Jamie's came, and I found out from the passengers that they would be returning around 1pm. Eventually returned, and packed everything up for 1. Met the park ranger, and enjoyed hearing his take on things with the park. Returned back to Tofino by boat, once again paying a steep price. Walked over and enjoyed a coffee and wifi @ Vincente's, picked up my bike and headed back to my original campsite to pick up the rest of my things that I had stashed in the woods. Various trials and tribulations which I will post on. Started making my way back to Alberni,encountering rain in the process. Stopped @ Kennedy Lake during a lull in the rain, and set up camp for the night.

June 18 - Rained throughout the night. Tent was wet inside and out. Loose pegs shifted in gravel exposing portions of groundsheet. Packed everything up, had some breakfast, and started cycling to Alberni. Road was not as dangerous as everyone made it out to be, but could see why there would be concern. Plenty of climbs, but really not all that bad. As I got closer to Alberni, turned on my depleted phone. Was happy to once again have a data connection, but found out that Chris and Nathan would not be home until 8pm. Since it was around 3pm, I decided I would keep biking. I quickly sent some hosting requests to Warm Showers people near Nanaimo. Ride up the hump from Alberni started dry, but became really wet. Pulled over to change into rain gear, only to have rain stop 10 minutes later. Changed again, and got a message from Tobi that I could crash at her place. Made it there around 8:30, did some laundry, and dried out my gear. Charged up most of my energy depleted electronics. Did some reading beofore falling asleep.

June 19 - Woke up, and started packing everything up. Enjoyed a coffee and some travelling information from Tobi. Headed out to visit some stores in Lantzville. Visited the Costco, and was greatful that an employee allowed me to make a purchase using my dad's account (via a temp card). Proceeded towards Duncan riding the trans Canada, eventually getting off to explore the Crofton region. Met up with my hosts Alan and Sandy (CS) at their home in the outskirts of Duncan. Unpacked my bike, then rode back into town to pick-up a few things. Made it back to Alan and Sandy's around 8pm, and enjoyed a wonderful dinner and sampled some of their tasty homemade wine. Enjoyed great conversation with both.

June 20 - Was originally going to head out to Lake Cowichan, but as it was a rainy day, headed out to Duncan and hung out in the Tim Hortons, finally updating things with this blog!

Rainy Day in Duncan - Catch Up Time

Originally, was planning on heading towards Port Renfrew this morning. However, since it has been a rainy gloomy day, have opted to head into Duncan, visit the Tim Hortons, and take advantage of the free wifi to catch up on the many things I have been neglecting. Am hoping to update this blog, and hopefully finally actually launch/publicize both the blog and fundraising aspect of this trek.

Tofino

Am in the Tofino region for the weekend, and am experiencing problems with data access on my phone. Am way behind on updating things, but expect to do so sometime in the middle of next week when I am less remote.

On the learning curve of maintaining this blog.

One thing is certain - I need to find better ways of maintaining this blog on a regular basis.

With all the travelling and exploring, it's not that easy to find the time to write about things. It hasn't helped that the weather here in BC has been amazing, so I've actually had very little down time.

Thusfar, I have not gone public with this blog, as I have been waiting for my CamH event page to go live. Once that is ready, I will send out info to everyone and anyone.

Week #1

I'm still in the process of figuring out how to manage this blog. Whenever possible, I will write as much as I can. Whenever I can't, I will try to make some form of a weekly sketch that provides info about where I was, and what I was doing.

As time and experience progresses, will (I hope) eventually get the hang of things!

May 31 - Flew out from Toronto, arrrived at Vancouver airport, picked up by Mike, first visualizations of Vancouver while driving to his home in North Vancouver

June 1 - Morning at the Cleveland Dam, re-assembly of bike, met Julian and , Grouse Grind, hung out at Mike's house, once visited (tailgated) Spencer while he was running the "Vancouver 100".

June 2 - Went over to Darski's house to help him move Leanna's pics from local gallery. Went out for first ride to the north shore MEC, had my fall on Fell, went for dinner with Mike and Morna at her parents place. Cousin Philip (maritime lawyer from UK) was visiting - great stories of his travel experiences.

June 3 - Spent the day "catching up" with various loose ends, contacting Warm Showers people, prepping for ride to Whistler. Rode out to Vancouver for first time - Lion's Gate bridge. Visited the Robert Lee YMCA, and attended a hatha yoga class.

June 4 - Headed out for my ride from North Vancouver to Whistler. Stopped and took various photos on the ride up. Met up with Alex (WS = Warm Showers) as she was finishing work. Went back to her place for dinner and settling in.

June 5 - Woke up for breakfast with Alex, then headed out with Alex to ride the gondola up Whistler. Hiked up with Alex, enjoyed the views, then hiked down. Alex went to work - I went Peak 2 Peak, yoga on the gondola, exploring above. Met up with Alex at work, picked up various things needed for dinner.

June 6 - Woke up early and went out for coffee in Whistler, worked for several hours updating things. Returned to Alex's around noon, fixed her bike, rode out with her to Lost Lake. She went to work, I rode around exploring. Hung out on dock on Lost lake, which turned out to be the nudist dock. Met a couple from Vancouver, and a local from Whistler, and enjoyed the afternoon talking to them while chilling in the sun. Early evening, rode out to Pemberton. Met with my hosts Anna and Nikki (WS).

June 7 - Originally planned on exploring farming areas near Pemberton, but clouds looked ready for rain, so opted to start my ride to Squamish. Cool breeze was perfect for uphill climb to Whistler. Picked up the rest of my stuff from Alex's in Whistler, met her at work to say bye, and continued on my way to Squamish. Made it to Karen/Russ (WS) around 6-ish. Enjoyed drinks with Karen, had dinner with both her and Russ, then went for an evening hike around their neighbourhood.

Arrival and Week-end in North Vancouver

My ghetto packed gear, safely arrived in Vancouver

As mentioned in my previous post, the flight was relatively OK. Upon arriving, the biggest concern was with whether my ghetto packaged gear would arrive intact. I eagerly went down to the baggage claim area, waiting to find out my fate.

Stacked everything onto the cart, ready to meet with Mike

Luckily, everything seemed to arrive intact. Was not certain if the uber crappy tape jobs would hold out with one of the boxes. I grabbed everything, stacked it onto a cart, and headed outside to meet my friend Mike, who most awesomely agreed to not only pick me up, but also to stay with him and his wife Morna while in Vancouver.

We started off Saturday morning by heading over near the Cleveland Dam. Mike and Morna were supporting their friend Spencer, who was running the Vancouver 100. This photo is from the top-side of the dam, looking down on the Capilano river.

Upon returning from the dam, it was time to get my bike back together, and make sure nothing was damaged during transport. Fortunately, Mike had a bike stand which I set up in his car port. In retrospect, I should have disconnected my brake cables, as things got tangled with my disconnected aerobars and handlebars.

Slowly but surely, everything fit back into place, and the Tank 3.6 was ready for business. I gave it a quick 5 minute test ride, and everything seemed OK.

There was not much time to tinker around, as the afternoon plan was to take on The Grouse Grind. Man o man - was that ever a climb. I finished it in 66 (or was it 68?) minutes, which is not all that bad for someone who is not used to this type of terrain. Man - did I ever sweat. At the onset, I had no problem keeping up with Mike and Julian, but eventually fell behind. I opted to keep my own pace, and worked hard to control my breathing.

The above photo is taken from the chalet at the top of the Grouse. An amazing view of Vancouver. Riding the gondola down (as seen to the left) was quite the scenic treat.

Later on in the afternoon, we returned to the same spot by Cleveland Dam to support Spencer when he was passing through on the way back to where he started. I took the opportunity to snap some more pics in the area. So beautiful.

We pretty much became a travelling tailgate party, and even opted to go meet Spencer one more time that evening. Prior to this, I had never had a Gin and Tonic with a slice of cucumber. Very refreshing. Good times.

On Sunday morning, we headed out to help Darski move some things. In the afternoon, I finally had my chance to go for a ride. The plan was to head to the North Vancouver MEC . In retrospect, it was totally foolish for me to ride my aerobars downhill on Fell Ave, as it resulted in a fall. Basically, I was riding on the shoulder, and needed to veer onto the road to avoid something. Unfortunately, in that spot, there was a 3/4 inch rise (like a mini wall), and my tires scraped, and I lost control and wiped out.

Did not injure anything major - scraped my knee and elbow, and my poor STI hood took a beating.
Picked the bike back up, and continued to MEC. Really enjoyed the layout of that store. I picked up what I needed, then headed back to Mike's, as we were heading to Morna's parents place for dinner. I was really touched by how warmly they took me in. Very much enjoyed meeting and talking with everyone.

Originally, the plan was for me to head up to Whistler on Monday morning for a training ride. My hip felt slightly sore (from my fall on Fell), so I opted to fix up my bike, and take care of some other things (such as updating this blog). I also successfully connected to my computer at home, and started transferring over some of the things that I did not manage to transfer onto a USB stick before leaving. Repaired the tear in my STI hood using a thin piece of rubber, and the "Shoe Goo" that I had brought for emergency purposes. Extra weight justified!

Update on CamH Fundraising

Just wanted to give a quick update that the fundraising portion of this trek should be up and running sometime over the next week. Just need to finish up a few things. Will post the URL here once I have it.

The URL for CamH Fundraising is: https://www.supportcamh.ca/events/ridethestigma

Crazy Hazy Departure Day

This entry is being typed via a bluetooth keyboard, on my Samsung Note2, while sitting aboard my WestJet flight from Toronto to Vancouver. From here on in, this will be my main means of communication throughout this trek.

First of all - I am amused that I actually seem to occasional have bars of service during this flight. Secondly, I'm very much not amused that I was unable to pair the bluetooth keyboard while in "Airplane Mode", even when I turned bluetooth back on.

The last few days were a crazy hazy whirlwind of preparations, sorting, packing, and tying up of loose ends. It goes without saying that this was not the type of a departure date that I had in mind. All in all, I think I needed another week of prep time for the trip, but felt pressured to fly out today (I only bought my ticket on Tuesday - You only need 2 days when you use airmiles) just so I could qualify for the last day of "Low Season". Live and learn.

My hope was to have already launched the fundraising campaign just before leaving. Now - will have to figure out the the final logistics of the launch whilst in BC. This should not be too complicated.

As mentioned, the last few days have been stressful and busy. All in all, I think I have coped with things rather well, despite not being where I wanted to be with everything pertaining to this trek.

Alas, I did not manage to prep/transfer a wide range of things from my computer at home. Am still hoping to do so remotely. I do have "Team Viewer" setup on my desktop, though I have never actually connected to my comp outside of my network at home. I suspect there will be a learning curve. All the audiobooks that I was planning to listen to while riding did not get transferred. Bummer.

The larger worry is that I totally over-packed, which is something I tend to do quite frequently, especially when under pressure. I had everything laid out, and I imagine I should have been much more selective. The initial plan was to have two checked pieces of baggage - my boxed bike and my boxed bike trailer, with everything else mixed between the two. I was not able to do this while maintaining a weight limit of 50lbs for each box. As such, I ended up packing 3 boxes in total, each weighing just under 50lbs.

Thankfully, WestJet employee Carmen was extremely merciful with me when I checked in. I explained that I was going to be cycling across Canada while fundraising for Mental Health, then realised that I did not really have much of anything to prove it. I offered the contact information for the person that I was working with from CamH, and also showed her this blog, which fortunately had a profile photo of me. All in all, Carmen took me for my word, and only charged me $50 for the additional baggage.

Ultimately, I think this positive experience with Carmen is what has left me feeling better about my over-packing. Now, all I'll have to do is drag this heavy weight-load across Canada, which is somewhat less painful than having to pay a fortune for such a privilege.

I guess we'll see how everything will come together once I am in Vancouver.

Challenges with medication

Many people who struggle with mental health can relate to the challenges that one faces with medications. Such was my experience on Sunday.

On Sundays, I would (when possible) make it for two back to back classes at the West End YMCA - Ashtanga Yoga, followed by Tai Chi. Yesterday,I woke up a little later in the morning than planned, and as such, was in a slight rush to make it for my last Sunday morning session (prior to leaving for this trip). I made it on time, and it was early through John's yoga class that I started to feel something weird - a strong overwhelming feeling of nausea. I knew what it was right off the bat - while rushing in the morning, I must have accidentally taken my morning medication twice. I've made this mistake before, so I am familiar with the feeling of nausea that accompanies doubling up on a Serotonin-Norepineephrine Reuptake Inhibitor (SNRI).

Realizing this, and experiencing it while working through a physically challenging yoga class was most strange. Instead of falling into a flow or rhythm, everything seemed all over the place. Both mind and body did not seem to be co-operating. It certainly was neither pleasurable nor comfortable. Many postures just felt like a struggle, and I found at times that I could not keep up. As such, I was forced to limit my attempts, just so I could make it through the class. When class ended, instead of sticking around for Tai Chi, I opted to head home.

In terms of productivity, much of the day was a write off. The timing for this was horrible, as I certainly have much to take care of this week before flying out on Friday.

One thing for certain - this week is going to be crazy busy and stressful. Hopefully I will not encounter any more similar curve balls!

Chariot Bike Hitch Project

While I was repairing my wheel during my training ride to Sarnia, it was suggested to me that I should consider traveling with a bike trailer. The thought had previously crossed my mind, but that was about it. When I returned to Toronto, I decided to see what I could find online. The BOB Yak trailer retails for $369 at MEC. Alas - too rich for my blood! As luck would have it, I found the following listing on craigslist:

Older Chariot bike trailer, Trans-Canada Trail edition. Frame and tires in great shape, some of the fabric on the floor part is failing, and needs repair. Could probably just put a piece of wood or plastic or something. Easy to fix, I just don't have the time.
 

Chariot - Trans Canada Trail Edition

I swiftly responded, and found out that the item in question was located in the east end of Toronto, and that it also lacked the hitch by which I could hook it up to my bike. With that said - the price was right - $30. I made plans to meet on Tuesday, around 5pm. Somewhere near 3pm, the seller sent me an email telling me that she was called to a meeting and would not be able to make it. She informed me that trailer was on her front porch, and that I could check it out without her. If interested, and totally relying on the honour system, I was to leave $30 in her mailbox.

While checking it out, it was pretty clear that this trailer had seen some good action. As mentioned, the floor part was in need of repair, and I also noticed that the wheel axle was bent (wheels not parallel). It obviously needed some tender loving care. Besides that, it just seemed like we were destined to be together - "Trans-Canada Trail edition". So I slipped $30 into the mailbox, hooked up the trailer to my rear rack (using 4 short bungee cords), and rode of with this empty trailer (with barely inflated tires).

The removed wheel, axle all cleaned up and lubricated

I quickly began fixing the trailer up with my dad. The hardest thing was removing the wheels - something that I knew I would have to be able to do if I was going to pack it for my flight. I hunted down the manual, and figured out how the wheels were assembled. We tried everything, but the wheels refused to budge. Eventually, through the combination of heating with a blow torch, and hammering away with fierce determination, did the rusted sub-axle system come apart. It had likely not been taken apart from the day it was put together.

After putting it back together, and obtaining a hitch from Bike Pirates, it was time to give it a test run. I loaded the trailer with all sorts of things to get a feel of what it would be like hauling a heavy load.

Heavy load test - cooler with cinder block, 

milk crate filled with ancient Litho 
encyclopedias, anvil, etc...

Hooked up to my naked bike

The test ride went relatively well, given that the trailer was ridiculously loaded. As such, I have decided to take it with me on the trek. Will finish the patchwork, and will coat the exterior with silicone.

Training Rides

I must say - it will take some getting used to blogging on a regular basis. I am not doing a good job with keeping up. I find I'm often thinking about what I will be posting, but I never seem to find the time to get around to typing. In my defines, I am pretty busy with all sorts of things while preparing for this trek. 

In any case - just wanted to chime in on the various training rides I have been engaging in. 

Besides my regular commute into the city (30km+ per day), I have done a few lengthier runs. Around mid May, I did my first lengthier ride - 140K from Dundalk, ON to Toronto. I went up north with a friend by car, thinking that it was too soon for both directions. I ended up only leaving around 2pm, as we were busy tinkering with some mods for my bike. It seemed like a perfect day for cycling. Not quite. Turns out his place was very much sheltered from the 28km+ wind, which ran directly against me for several hours. It felt quite crappola. As a result, I had to gun it without many rest stops, as I really did not want to ride through the dark. Ended up pulling in at home around 9:30pm, exhausted.

When I woke up the next morning, I cycled over to the YMCA slightly earlier, so I could do some stretches in the steam room before a yoga class. The yoga class was an experience in futility. My muscle tissue was clearly inflamed, and I simply could not get my legs to co-operate. Alas.

My next major training ride was a trek from Toronto to Rochester Hills Michigan. The purpose of this trek was to pick-up a bunch of bike part upgrades that I had purchased months earlier, and had shipped to a friend in Michigan. Also - I wanted to get my muscles conditioned to riding with a heavy load, so I packed heavily (with things I did not need). Just as I was getting ready for my early Monday morning departure, I discovered late Sunday that my passport was going to expire in about a week. As such, bumped the departure date to Tuesday, so I could renew my passport on Monday, and thus have it for my cross-Canada trek (just in case). Unfortunately, this resulted in my no longer having a valid passport (the old one gets clipped), so I could no longer enter the US. Fortunately, my friend agreed to drive things over to Sarnia. This also allowed me to watch Game 7 of the Leafs VS Bruins, which as we all know, ended most bizarrely. In many ways, I'm thankful that I left the next morning - no chance to sulk after such a painful choke.

This trek also served as a opportunity to use the Warm Showers network. I contacted hosts in London and Sarnia, and secured a place to spend the night during my trek. I rode out of Etobicoke along Burnamthrorpe until it ended, then made my way south to Dundas, and rode south-west for a lengthy period. I had never taken this route before, and my GPS seemed to insist that I take something different (that was 40K longer). I persisted. The ride to London was quite cold. I was in fact quite lucky that I did not leave on the Monday, as it was even colder! 

I arrived at my hosts place somewhere around 9:30pm. It was a great experience. My host was originally from Holland, now working in London. We chatted for several hours about a wide range of things. Just before going to bed, I noticed that I had broken a spoke on my rear wheel. I wrapped the broken spoke around the others, and decided I would deal with it in the morning. Fortunately, as my host was an avid cyclist, he had the tools needed to remove my cassette, as well as a replacement spoke. We got the wheel back into relatively decent shape, so I packed up, ready to proceed to Sarnia. 

Spoke breakdown west of London ON

While it was a nice sunny day, the headwind was also strong. Even worse, not far out of London, another spoke broke on my rear wheel. The wheel was in pretty bad shape. I cringed. The irony was that one of the items that I was picking up in Sarnia was a stronger triple-cross wheel-set.

Turns out I was considerably lucky with where I stopped. As I was inspecting my bike, weighing my options, someone pulled into the driveway of the place I was stopped in front of - which was an Animal Care Centre. The driver was Gertie, who owned an operated the centre with her husband. I explained my problem, and she very kindly offered (no doubt quite used to helping out strays) to give me a ride into Strathroy, dropping me off at Doug and Marion's Bike shop. 

When I arrived, Doug (who handled repairs) was busy elsewhere, but Marion was kind enough to let me work on the problem myself. I put my bike into the repair stand, removed my wheel, removed the cassette, and installed a replacement spoke. For anyone who has worked with me at Bike Pirates, it is no secret that my wheel truing skills are mixed at best. I puttered around with my spokes using the truing stand, silently cursing myself for not having a copy of the diagram that I would often use while at Pirates. Fortunately, Doug jumped in and gave me a hand, and had the wheel back in amazing form in lightning fast speed. When I explained my plans to travel across Canada, he highly recommended that I look into obtaining a bike trailer. I loaded things up, and continued my way towards Sarnia.

My hope that the headwind would settle was crushed. It increased to 30K or so against me. This, combined with the spoke delay, posed a serious problem for my intended render-vous with my friend in Sarnia. The plan was for him to drive over the boarder and meet with me right after he finished work. My friend was also in a rush due to other commitments, and could not hang out and wait for me. Both the conditions and the delay made it certain that I would not be able to make it in time. Fortunately, my host in Sarnia (whom I had not yet met) was able to help out big time. He agreed to have my friend meet him at his work, and receive the items. What a life saver! 

I arrived in Sarnia exhausted. As my host had a dodgeball game to play that evening, I opted to unload my bike, and headed to the Sarnia YMCA for some steam-room, sauna, jacuzzi stretches. Words can't describe how good it felt. When I returned, we chatted for a bit, and I soon went to sleep. Did not even have the energy to look over the various items that were dropped off.

Cold setting my frame on a front lawn in Sarnia

The next morning, I looked over things, and began the process of upgrading my bike. The new rear wheel that I obtained had a 135mm hub, and I knew that I would have to "cold set" (stretch) the rear drops of my bike. Fortunately, I had read up on the process from the late great Sheldon Brown, and even practiced on a junk frame from Bike Pirates. With the help of my host, using the awesome power of 2x4, some string, and a ruler, we bent the rear drops, and I installed my new rear wheel. 

My original plan after Sarnia was to head north along Lake Huron, eventually reaching my friends place in Dundalk for the long week-end. While in Sarnia, I realized that MEC's Toronto Bikefest was happening on the Saturday, where I had agreed to volunteer for safety checks. As such, after finishing modifications that afternoon, I packed things up, and headed back to London. I contacted the host I had stayed with previously, and he agreed to take me in for one more night. Amazing. I left Sarnia somewhere around 4pm-ish, and while the wind was not on my back, it was not against me. I made it back to London just before 10pm. 

Heading back to Toronto

The next morning, I left early, knowing that the London to Toronto stretch would be long and more challenging as it was my 4th consecutive day of cycling. When I rode through Woodstock, I could not resist popping into the Woodstock YMCA. Enjoyed some stretches in the co-ed sauna, swam a few laps in the pool, took a shower, then got back on the road. Things felt good for awhile, but after a few hours, I felt like I was dragging bones. Was ecstatic when I made it to Cambridge, and stopped at the Timmie's to fuel up. I opted to take a different route back, which proved to be much more challenging at various points. Eventually, I made it to where Derry Rd. starts, which I rode all the way into Toronto. Good times!

What's all this then? Why I am doing this.

I guess this first post is where I explain what this is all about.

The question that has been plaguing my mind for what seems and eternity - Where to begin?

Perhaps a slight painful stroll down memory lane?

My story - aka When the shit hit the fan

X-ray of my right hand

My reflex explanation is to point my titanium enhanced finger at Fall 2007, which is when I severely damaged my right hand when it accidentally made contact with the powerful blades of a tree stump cutter. It ripped the top of my hand open, and the impact broke two bones that were mended via 2 permanent titanium plates. Through many months of painful physio sessions, I luckily managed to regain about 95% of my range.

Where I was not so lucky was with what was going on inside my head: lots of headaches, ruminating thoughts, and severe struggles with sleep. When I initially attempted to explore these problems, I encountered various blocks, and thus found myself easily discouraged. At the hospital where I was receiving treatment for my hand, the only way of getting psychological help required me to have a family doctor, which I did not have at the time. Instead of pursuing this further, I opted for believing that things would somehow get better on their own over time. 

They didn't. 

Making light of a crappy situation

I tried to involve myself as best I could with the various activities and relationships that I enjoyed prior to my accident, but this slowly diminished. I couldn’t understand what was happening to me, and I soon began alienating myself from everyone and everything that was once important in my life. I kept clinging to my belief that with sufficient time, everything would fall back into place. I just needed to heal. Thus, instead of exploring the nature of my problems, I found myself overwhelmed by them. My only way of coping with this was by shutting myself out from the rest of the world. Both my sleep and my functionally worsened, and avoidance became my natural reflex. Days turned to weeks, weeks turned to month, and months turned to years. 

Looking back on this, it’s difficult for me to rationalize how things played out, largely because my behaviour had become most irrational. I was so miserable and bitter, and I had pretty much accepted that my mental anguish was my destiny – that the future would hold nothing but pain and suffering. Around fall 2010, my health/behaviour had worsened to such a degree where my parents could no longer stay passive. In short, my mother forced me to attend an appointment with her doctor, who then agreed to take me in as a patient. I began taking some medications, and agreed to see a specialist in the late fall. The specialist was from CamH (Centre for Addictions and Mental Health), and he referred me to the 28 day AIM (Alternative Inpatient Milieu) program at their Queen street location. 

As a client at CamH from early 2011 until early 2012, I participated in various programs & group therapy sessions, adjusted medications, and learned a considerable amount about mental health coping strategies. My experience was profound. Prior to CamH, I had no knowledge of such things. One of the most important things that I took from this experience was the understanding of how physical activity can help improve mood disorders. CamH introduced me to Yoga, Tai Chi, and educated me on the benefits of controlled breathing. It was through CamH that I first stepped foot into a YMCA Health & Fitness Centre, which encouraged me to obtain my own membership for continuous usage. While at CamH, I was encouraged to pursue cycling as means of improving my struggles with sleep – a process of trying to tire my body out. All of these things are important tools that I regularly use to cope with my struggles.

While increased physical activity has helped me regain much control of my body, the largest hurdle for me has been with stigma - the negative attitudes and negative behaviours that are commonly associated with mental health. Not knowing what was going on with me, I found it next to impossible to talk about my experience with friends or family. My experiences at CamH were powerful in that they made me realize that I was not alone in my struggle. I now find myself much more comfortable with talking about my mental health, but I have struggled with engaging people outside of the mental health community. Recently, I've come to the realization that not only am I ready to talk about this, but that it is crucial for me to be able to do so in order to move forward with my life. The hardest part for me has been in finding a way to start the process and break my cycle of silence. 

The healing powers of cycling

I want to briefly explain how cycling has become an important tool for regaining control of my life. 

Back in 2008 (when I was finishing the physio treatments for my hand) cycling was suggested to me as an exercise that would help strengthen my hand through the process of curling my fingers around a handlebar. At that point in my life, I had not been on a bike since childhood in the 1980's. I gave it a shot a few times, but that was about it. After the AIM program, I found myself riding much more frequently. The more I rode, the more I learned. I noticed that there were slight improvements with my sleep patterns. Gradually, I started moving from short rides to longer treks of exploration within Toronto. Eventually, these rides branched out throughout Ontario, and even included a problematic trek to attend a friends wedding in Union Pier Michigan.


In conversations with both mental health patients and professionals alike, I found I couldn’t really explain exactly why cycling was effective – I just knew that it worked for me. Here are several pics from the last few years:

Riding back to Toronto from a camp near Huntsville

Enjoying some cycling with a friends bike, visiting

the YMCA in Champaign IL

Taking shortcuts can lead to trouble!

The cockpit of the Tank 2.3

Cycling route to Montreal and back

Ride the Stigma: Cycling as means to break my cycle of silence

Winter 2012/13 was rough, and consisted of my worst regression since prior to my CamH experience. My energy levels were so low, and I slowly found myself getting out of the house less and less. I recognized the signs and the symptoms of relapse, but was still not able to effectively do anything to change things.

At some point, some friends started discussing a spring cycling trip to New York City. Within that group, I met someone who was planning on cycling across Canada in late April. The seed was planted, but honestly seemed like a pipe dream, for a wide range of reasons. This changed in early March, which was when I randomly met Gordon Robb. Back in the summer of 2007, Gordon rode solo from Victoria BC to Halifax NS while raising money for lymphoma. Talking to Gordon was very empowering and encouraging, and it has acted as a catalyst.

Around the same time, it was through my discussions with mental health specialists that I came upon an interesting strategy that would enable me to continue my exploration of sleep improvement via cycling, but also allow me to kick-start the process of openly discussing my mental health struggles. Why not ride across Canada on a bike, and help raise mental health awareness?  

And thus - Ride the Stigma - a self-sustained solo touring exploration trek across Canada - was born.

Besides the above mentioned, one of the largest draws for this trek was that my exposure to the vast geography of Canada has been limited to Ontario and Quebec (a brief flight layover in Calgary does not really count). What better way to experience the rest of the provinces than by travelling by bike? 

Since CamH has played a strong role in my recovery, I decided to use the trek to promote fundraising for mental health via the CamH Foundation. Will link to this once I have it all figured out. As a patient, I am well aware that many mental health initiatives have been limited due to a lack of funding. Honestly - I've learned and gained so much throughout my experiences there, that it would be amazing if my expedition could also help them in the process. 

As a lover of nature, I plan to experience and visit as much as possible. While I am in the process of researching/planning a specific route, I will also be flexible and make adjustments based on information obtained by engaging with local residents. In terms of accommodations, I will be travelling with camping equipment, so I plan on using campgrounds. While visiting urban environments, I will be staying with either friends, or fellow cyclists from the Warm Showers network.

Another portion of this trip will focus on exploring mental health itself, both on a personal and general level. I plan on listening to a wide range of self-help audiobooks, as well as reading various eBooks while I travel. Since I have a strong tech background, I will be using/exploring technology throughout my journey. I will be using my Android based smartphone in various ways throughout the trip - it will be link to the rest of the world. I plan to take many photos, and I plan to blog and use both Twitter and Facebook to document my journey, and share my reflections pertaining to mental health.

My touring bike - The Tank 3.6